Johnson volleyball steps out of Reagan's shadow with comeback

Jaguars dig out of two-game hole for first win over Rattlers.

By Terrence Thomastthomas@express-news.net

Published 11:34 pm, Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Photo: Kin Man Hui, --

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Johnson's Olivia Drummond (20) reacts with her teammates after a point against Reagan in volleyball at Littleton Gym on Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2011. Johnson defeated Reagan in five games. Kin Man Hui/kmhui@express-news.net

Johnson's Kassie Frietag (09) reacts after a winning a point against Reagan in volleyball at Littleton Gym on Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2011. Johnson defeated Reagan in five games. Kin Man Hui/kmhui@express-news.net

Johnson's Kassie Frietag (09) reacts after a winning a point against Reagan in volleyball at Littleton Gym on Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2011. Johnson defeated Reagan in five games. Kin Man Hui/kmhui@express-news.net

This was their time, the top-ranked Johnson Jaguars kept insisting. This was their moment, their best opportunity to finally escape from underneath the shadow of the school from which they originated and show they could thrive on their own.

Yet for the first two games of Wednesday's District 26-5A match against No. 10 Reagan, Johnson looked little like the team that has rolled up one victory after another. It committed rare errors and looked unsure.

Then suddenly, things changed. The Jaguars, who could do little right and were a game from defeat, started doing little wrong — parlaying the newfound momentum into a 14-25, 23-25, 25-13, 25-18, 15-11 victory at Littleton Gymnasium.

It was Johnson's first victory against Reagan. The Jaguars had lost the first eight meetings in the series, including all four matches in 2010.

The Rattlers used a 13-5 run to pull away from an early deficit in Game 1, then closed the second game with a 5-2 run, overcoming a 21-20 deficit thanks to four errors by Johnson.

It was then that Carnae Dillard took over.

The senior outside hitter pounded 22 of her match-high 29 kills over the final three games, helping Johnson finish the first half of 26-5A play unblemished.

The Jaguars won the third and fourth games handily, then built a five-point cushion in the decisive Game 5 and never looked back.

“It was just like, ‘Why are we scared of them?'” Dillard said of her team's struggles with Reagan (25-13, 2-3). “We know we're better then them. Why are we playing to this level that we've never played before? Stop being scared of them, play, and let's win the game.

“People were tense, like, ‘Oh, my gosh, it's Reagan. Oh my gosh, I don't know what to do.' Just play volleyball, (and) do what you do best out on the court.”

For Johnson, that consisted of relying on a balanced attack that featured five players with at least five kills and three with at least 10. It consisted of the back row play of libero Ayssa Garcia, who had 34 digs. And it included strong net play, led by senior middle hitter Olivia Drummond, who had 11 kills and four blocks.

“Something just clicked,” Teel said. “It's not really describable. We were out of system, and when you're out of system against a great team like Reagan, you can't win. Finally, we just got our passes, sets, and we were able to put the ball away.”

In the process, the Jaguars discarded the three-year albatross that was Reagan, likely ending the Rattlers' six-year stranglehold over 26-5A in the process.

A week ago, Reagan had won 73 of 75 district matches since 2006, including 45 straight. It has now lost three in a row, all in five games.

“It shows a lot about our team,” Teel said. “We had to go over this little hump, in order to get to the big hump. Reagan's something you have to get through. I think we did have to get over the mental block, but eventually we got over it. We realized we're better than this, and we should be playing better. We had nothing to lose. We really didn't have a choice.”